What do European citizens think about the energy transition? Climato-scepticism, climate-relativism, do these voices that have been raised against the transition for several months reflect the reality on the ground? As the European elections approach, ENGIE has joined forces with the Jean-Jaurès Foundation, a French think tank, and the CSA opinion institute, to provide its insight, share its convictions and its recommendations to European decision-makers in order to implement an affordable and desirable energy transition for all.

Entitled “From challenge to opportunity: acting together to succeed in the energy transition”, ENGIE's advocacy, published under the aegis of the Jean-Jaurès Foundation, is based on a survey conducted by the CSA Institute among 10,000 citizens from 10 European countries to better understand their perception of the energy transition. It paints the picture of a Europe largely convinced of the merits of this transition and, however, confirms doubts or concerns about our ability to achieve the ambitious objectives that Europe has set for its decarbonization, and about the impact of the energy transition on purchasing power.

European citizens mobilized

The CSA survey reveals very encouraging prospects: 9 out of 10 European citizens want the transition to progress. This is also reflected in their actions: 64% say they have already taken action, at their level, in favor of the energy transition (reduction in consumption, renovation of housing, etc.).

The energy transition is underway but this movement remains fragile. Thus, 45% of those questioned recommend moving forward cautiously. One in two young people and 42% of Europeans even think that the transition can stop. In addition, the study reveals significant disparities between countries. While the countries of Southern Europe such as Portugal, Spain and Italy wish to go further in the transition, those of Northern Europe, Belgium and the Netherlands in particular, display more reservations. In Germany, 15% of citizens want to go back in time.

Europeans also doubt Europe's ability to achieve its ambition of carbon neutrality by 2050. Nearly one in two people questioned consider this objective unrealistic, in Germany this is even 68% of respondents. For 47% of Europeans, their main fear concerns the cost of investments to implement the transition. And if this is generally perceived as an opportunity for the planet, innovation and health, a third of respondents see it as a threat to their purchasing power, with even more pronounced reservations in countries like France, Belgium and the Netherlands.

“We must hear and respond to these doubts, because we need everyone’s mobilization to succeed in the energy transition. This is our role: after governments, it is the large industrial groups specializing in energy which are among the most legitimate, in the eyes of European citizens, to advance the energy transition. ENGIE is there: our 97,300 employees, including 78,000 in Europe, work daily to develop and make carbon-free energies accessible, in particular renewable energies (electricity and gas), as well as efficiency and energy solutions. energy sobriety. With the support of the Jean Jaurès Foundation, we wanted to counter skepticism with our knowledge of the reality on the ground,” shared Catherine MacGregor, Managing Director of ENGIE, in the introduction to the plea published under the aegis of the Jean Jaurès Foundation. Jaurès.

The transition is within our reach and will be a source of opportunities

ENGIE has a positive vision of the energy transition. We know that it is within our reach and we know the levers to implement it: massive deployment of renewable electricity and gas energies, development of flexibility solutions and infrastructures necessary for the decarbonized system, without forgetting the efforts of sobriety and 'energetic efficiency.

Their implementation has a cost, of course, but it comes with opportunities for job creation, reduced energy costs and improved quality of life. The cost of inaction would be incomparable. For example, according to the IEA, the global economy could lose 14% of GDP in the event of warming to 2.6°C.

“The survey carried out by CSA for ENGIE provides valuable assistance for action. It shows that, for those who want to lead the energy transition, the stakes have shifted. Yesterday, there was work to be done on convictions and knowledge. Today, we must show that the transition can take place – that it is a possible future and that its effects can be positive – that it is a desirable future. In other words, we must draw the next world and mark the path that leads there,” shared Gilles Finchelstein , Secretary General of the Jean-Jaurès Foundation.

Building on these convictions and with 77% of European citizens indicating that the energy transition will be an important criterion for their vote , ENGIE has formulated a series of recommendations to Europe. The objective: accelerate what works, improve what needs to be improved and correct what slows us down. 

These recommendations are grouped around five main areas:

1. Integrate the imperative of cost control into the European energy strategy
The price of energy is a major determinant of the competitiveness of businesses and the purchasing power of European households. For the transition to be accepted, it must be done at the most controlled costs possible. Taking into account the impact of European public policies on the overall price of energy must be a European reflex.

2. Filling the blind spots of tomorrow's energy system 
In addition to the investments necessary for the massive development of renewable electricity and gas energies, several tens of billions of euros of investment will have to be mobilized each year for the deployment of electricity networks and flexibility solutions. essential to the carbon-free system.

3. Making the energy transition a lever for the reindustrialization of Europe and its competitiveness
The European Union must respond to multiple challenges: accelerate its decarbonization, strengthen its energy sovereignty, while ensuring the competitiveness of its economy in the face of competition worldwide. To do this, a balance must be found between the overall cost of the transition and the use of European sectors, without slowing down decarbonization. 

4. Build a coherent, simple, pragmatic regulatory framework
This framework must provide realistic perspectives for Europe, and make it possible to build informed public policies, ensuring that all stakeholders, particularly industrialists, are consulted upstream. 

5. Better target funding to support the transition
Whether it takes the form of European subsidies or national aid, public money is rare. It must make it possible to accelerate the development and scale-up of less mature technologies and to support changes in the uses and behaviors of European citizens, leaving no one behind. 

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